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Topic Review (Newest First)

09-25-2013 10:26 AM

astroracer

No apologies necessary! Believe me, you aren't the only one telling me the "crimps" are junk... This is why I post a lot of the stuff I do. If it's not right, or there is a better way, I want to know it... Thank you for the input, very much appreciated!
The issue I have with the current dies is they like to squash material out of the sides, between the die halves.This is what I was trying to avoid. I will do some work on a new set of dies for the crimper that will give me good crimps. By rolling the top of the lug down, into the wire Molex style, I will keep it from squashing the metal of the lug out between the dies and, hopefully, give a better crimp. Stay tuned.
Mark

09-25-2013 10:09 AM

1971BB427

Sorry Mark. I wasn't trying to give you grief, just trying to help. I've used that style crimper for over 30 yrs. with Panduit, Stakon, or Burndy terminals, and always make beautiful crimps that don't buckle or look bad. But I've occasionally at home bought some inexpensive crimp terminals, and often had bad luck, so I gave up on them.
Again, I apologize if what I said didn't come across the right way.

09-25-2013 09:47 AM

astroracer

Okay, I have gotten more grief for these "crimps" then I like... I thought they were okay for what I am doing but I guess they are not. I will be rethinking the process. I am going to make a couple of new top dies to, hopefully, bring these up to a better standard.
The terminals I have are good quality, it just takes a better process to get a good crimp. I am looking for a "crimp" here... Not a "squash" which is what I have now.
Mark

09-25-2013 09:02 AM

1971BB427

I've never had good quality terminals buckle or get ugly. Maybe the terminals you're buying should be upgraded to a good Stakon or Burndy?

09-25-2013 03:44 AM

astroracer

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1971BB427

If you get terminals sized properly for the gauge wire you're using, you wont have to do the modification to the barrel to get a proper crimp. Be careful not to over crimp and compress the wires strands too much, or it will fracture them and reduce it's load carrying capability.

The terminals ARE the right size, thank you... Overlapping the joint simply makes for a nicer, more consistant crimp. Rather then fighting each other to compress this mod allows the two halfs to slide past each other during the crimping process. Rather then a bulged and buckled mess this creates a nice, even crimp, as you can see...
I didn't see any signs of distress in the crimped joint. You would have to step down on the die size to compress it to much. This isn't going to happen with the correct die size.
Mark

09-24-2013 06:15 PM

1971BB427

If you get terminals sized properly for the gauge wire you're using, you wont have to do the modification to the barrel to get a proper crimp. Be careful not to over crimp and compress the wires strands too much, or it will fracture them and reduce it's load carrying capability.

09-24-2013 06:04 PM

Dave57210

WOW!!!
I'm impressed - very good work - nice outcomes . Thank you for the tip on the hydraulic crimper - i need to look into scoring one of those for the bigger stuff. I use a ratcheting one for the "normal" sizes - it won't release until the crimp is done up right and the ratcheting action makes it really easy to use, even up to the 10 ga wires.

09-24-2013 05:55 PM

astroracer

Even though I am working 10 hrs this week I got out and did some wiring stuff tonight...
I clamped the Hydraulic Crimper right to the rad support and got busy. This little mod is turning out to be pretty handy...
I hung the relay box and routed the wires in some semblance of how they will be when installed.

I got the power lead for the relay box, the charge/power lead for the battery (from the back), the power lead for the fuse box and the power lead from the alternator all crimped tonight. Once I got going it took about a half hour to do all of the crimps. Having the crimper right there, where I was working, was nice!
These are some very tight crimps...

I did learn a bit tonight. The terminals I am using are rolled, with the seam at the top, as you can see here.
After I did the first one (which I got lucky on) I decided to pinch the terminals closed a bit so one edge is "tucked" under the other. When doing this the edge getting tucked will actually "snap" under the top edge.
This guides the crimp into a very tight roll. I think it compresses the wire about half it's diameter, just looking at it...
This ready for some heat shrink. I need to get some larger diameter red shrink (this is just the plastic boot that came with the terminal)... I could use black I guess but I am trying to make this stuff look like I thought about it before I did it.
Here is the power block I mounted last week with the cables loosely routed.
Here is a pic of the relay center with the cover in place... This will get painted body color so it will all but disappear after install.
That's what I did.
Mark

09-23-2013 07:56 AM

1971BB427

The key to keeping it all in place while crimping is to put the lug in the jaws and then just bring tteension on the jaws until they hold the lug. Then you can have both hands free to get the stripped wire into the lug, and start crimping it. This is where the mechanical crimper has an advantage, as it's single stroke function doesn't move things around as much as the multiple stroke hydraulic.

09-22-2013 06:45 PM

astroracer

Yes, agreed, soldering is not recommended but if there is no way to do a good crimp it is better then an iffy crimp.
Now there is no reason to solder or have a bad crimp. This crimper gives good results and is very consistent.
The dies are steel, not aluminum...

I modified my crimper so it will easily clamp to the welding bench. Frees up a hand for holding the wire in place.
I marked out a pattern for a couple of drilled and tapped holes in the head.
I will be screwing it to this piece of 1/4" plate with a couple of drilled and counter bored holes.
I clamped the tool in the drill press vise and drilled two holes out to .149 for tapping for a #10-32 screw.
Here is the plate getting drilled and counter bored.
Test fit. Bolted up nice and was very sturdy. This will work great when I get to crimping all of the van cables...
Cleaned and painted the plate.
This will be good to go and, if I need it do any crimps in tight places, the plate will come right off.
Mark

09-22-2013 09:25 AM

65ELCMO

steel dies. Mine were marked wrong for the sizes. For home shop use it is good.

09-22-2013 09:22 AM

1971BB427

The only soldered connections I do on cars is splicing wiring. I do soldered splices with shrink tube, and try to never use crimped butt splices in any car wiring.

09-22-2013 09:11 AM

OLNOLAN

Not too bad for the price

Astro, Thats pretty cool for the price. If you priced a professional brand hydraulic crimper along with a complete set of dies, the price would give you a stroke. It appears the dies are cheap aluminum, if so, they will have a limited lifespan.

I agree with BB427 that a properly done mechanical crimp is perfectly acceptable. The Greenlee and Burndy adjustable mechanical crimpers are a lifetime tool, but because of that, you have to hunt to find one cheap.

Also, I usually bite my tongue when I read about guys soldering all their connections. Its simply a waste of time when high quality compression connectors, properly installed, are every bit as good. Soldering connections has it place on devices designed to be soldered, but 99.99% of automotive electrical connections only need crimp type connections.

Nolan

09-22-2013 08:28 AM

1971BB427

Quote:

Originally Posted by dogwater

I always wanted one of those. Its one of those tools that won't be used much but when you need it you have it. I usually solder any thing big.

Soldered connections don't make as good a connection as a properly crimped connection. In the electrical trade many installation specs don't allow soldered connections because of the resistance, which builds heat, and breaks down the solder.

09-21-2013 08:42 PM

John long

I won't need to buy one. I can borrow Astroracer's. I looked at his profile and saw we live in the same town.

John

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